Christmas 2022

It is time for Christmas. I am not going to say that I am like The Grinch and hate it because I enjoy some elements of it a lot. But I want to make clear that I can’t stand the Christmas songs that sound everywhere (except Carol of the bells, of course), the many movies produced for this time of the year (and have little to do with Christmas besides happening during the holidays), and, above all, the aggressive marketing used to make you feel guilty for not buying presents.

Taking away the superficial publicizing, I find some fabulous things in Christmas. I have always been convinced that magic exists, even if the media does everything in its power to make us believe otherwise. So, the part of Christmas I love is that it is the time of the year when magic is allowed to be real.

And I am not referring to the Christmas miracles that flood the seasonal movies, but to the beliefs around this celebration. During this festivity, adults allow children to believe in magic without attempting to shatter their dreams. If a kid says that he witnessed a fairy during spring, most adults will immediately explain that fairies are not real and that whatever they saw must be the product of imagination. But most of them wouldn’t dare to say that Santa Claus or his elves are not real. Certainly, childhood is the best time to enjoy Christmas, that time before your mind becomes corrupted by the adult’s lack of faith. And there is nothing better than the expectation of receiving Christmas presents that night.

Christmas is one of the festivities in Mexico that are completely influenced by TV content from the United States. And most of the knowledge that Mexican kids have about Santa Claus comes from the movies. For this reason, I had certain worries when I was a little boy (yes, I have always been apprehensive).

One of those worries was Santa’s arrival and how it would be possible for him to enter my home if we didn’t have a chimney. In movies, he or his elves are always seen entering the houses through the chimney and leaving the presents under the tree before eating the milk and cookies that the infant of the house left for them in gratitude (with that diet, there is no wonder about him being so characteristically big). But my mom explained to me then that he, as a magical being, could enter through the space between the door and the floor, and the chimneys were only a convenience and not truly necessary. That thought brought me to lie down on the floor and watch the space below the door, wondering how it could be possible for a man his size to pass through there. Luckily, I watched a cartoon where he was able to do that without issues by becoming magical glowing dust. So that one was solved.

Another troubling thought I had was how could he find me if we were visiting my grandmother’s house. But my mom explained that he has a way of always knowing this kind of thing. And, of course, there is the famous song about Santa where he seems to be a professional stalker that specifies it, so that was another fear solved.

My last concern was that my mother had explained to me that Santa only comes to leave the presents if everyone at home is asleep. That one was particularly troubling because adults always seemed to sleep until way too late. They had a dinner that ended at midnight, and then they had these long conversations that never seemed to end. I never knew how long they really lasted because I always fell asleep before. I thought the worry wouldn’t let me sleep, but as a kid, I could always fall asleep no matter how worried I was. That is a magical power that I would like to get back.

This last case brings to me an existential question, and it is something that I have not been able to solve even to this day. I have always wondered how Santa always managed to leave the presents without me noticing. It didn’t matter how late I slept and how early I woke, he always came just at the right time when I was fully asleep. Every year I had a personal mission to see him arrive, but I always failed. And I’m glad I did because my mother told me that Santa would stop to bring me presents if I ever saw him.

Those mornings were truly amazing. There was a mixture of the excitement of receiving the presents and the wonder of knowing that Santa, with his magic, had left them there. Those gifts, therefore, became the irrefutable proof that magic is real. At some point, I also wondered about what kind of abilities the elves possessed that allowed them to make exact copies of the items found in the stores (sometimes even with labels included) but that became quickly irrelevant in the face of true magic and excitement.

There is nothing more real than the magic of Christmas. Magic that adults don’t question and children can freely enjoy. The magic of being with our loved ones and being able to thank for those who are here and remember with joy those who are no longer with us but are still in our hearts. Because my mom explained many things to me, and her words and her love are still with us every Christmas.

Teach the children to believe in magic and never allow it to go out in you. Magic is so real that we can’t see it, but we can always feel it. It resides in our minds and makes everything more beautiful. Happy holidays and Merry Christmas. Don’t forget to give Santa Claus a glass of lactose-free milk and cookies.